silvermom05

I was really hoping for a RMC like "Goliath." So, SO disappointed. They took away Rolling Thunder away for THIS? A carnival ride. Unbelievably LAME

I was at the park yesterday as well--saw no demolition happening yet and that's exactly what I was thinking! Maybe if we close our eyes and wish REALLY hard LOL

Yes that is true, and while they do love those rides too, truthfully they are all pretty lame compared to RT. My kids really felt like big boys on that ride. Bummer

What is so upsetting though is that these rides have tall height requirements so they can not be considered "family rides." Sky Screamer is 48" and for the bumper cars you need to be 54" to drive! This is a much taller requirement on bumper cars than I see anywhere else. It means that I STILL can't go on it with my kids who are 6 and 8. That's what was so great about RT...we all could ride together and it was so much fun

Enjoy your last ride sfglocal! I rode RT last Sunday with my two older boys (8 and 6yrs old) 11 times in a row! I was very, very tearful--the ride operators thought I was insane. But it was the best memory that I have made yet on that ride so was a great way to say goodbye. Enjoy your last ride!

Daved-- Wow...You said absolutely everything I am feeling in my heart. It is comforting to know that others completely understand. I too asked for John Fitzgerald all week and was given the disrespect of being sent to a voicemail every time I mentioned the words "Rolling Thunder" or "John Fitzgerald." I don't deserve that treatment after patronizing Great Adventure for 37 years! And I definitely did not deserve the bitchy attitude of Margaret--why they chose her to call me back I will never know. All I wanted is to talk with someone to express our collective opinion and to ask why this was decided. My mom said I should have called pretending that my business wanted to make a sizable donation to the park--then perhaps I would have been able to talk to someone in charge. Your sentence about being loyal to the GA that no longer exists brought a tear to my eye. Well, we do have this beautiful website that celebrates the glory of GA in the past--thank you to everyone here at greatadventurehistory.com who takes the time to make this website special--you are amazing and I will always be grateful for you! Also....I have actually never been to Disney--maybe it is time to try it!

Dear Friends of ROLLING THUNDER, I am writing to thank you all for your support in signing our petition to keep Rolling Thunder rolling. Unfortunately it seems that we have lost the fight. While 500+ signatures is something I am very proud of, it really isn’t enough to convince Six Flags to change their mind about their crappy decision. If only we had more time…nonetheless I am happy that we tried. I tried to make phone contact with Six Flags all week—every time I mentioned the words “Rolling Thunder” I was either put on hold indefinitely, transferred to a generic voicemail or hung up on completely. I tried calling Great Adventure and also both corporate offices: in NY and TX and got similar responses. Finally a woman named Margaret in the Six Flags Great Adventure guest relations was chosen to return my inquiries—a very bad choice on their part. Speaking with Margaret was a revelation. Some of the things she said which will stay with me were "I can't imagine how anyone could get sentimental about a roller coaster" and also "Six Flags is only in business to make money.” She was very patronizing to me and told me that ALL businesses feel this way, which I absolutely refuse to accept. Margaret would not let me speak with anyone higher up (her superiors were all conveniently on vacation or sick leave) and eventually hung up on me. Apparently, Great Adventure’s old slogan “We care about you” no longer applies. She also said that their minds are made up and there is nothing that can be done—that they are eagerly waiting to knock Rolling Thunder down Monday morning. This is very disappointing for me to see the true colors of Six Flag Great Adventure and its unwillingness to listen to opinions of their long-time customers. How sad. I was interviewed by the Asbury Park Press today so check in—there could be a story about us and our efforts in their publication. www.app.com So again, thank you all for everything you all have done. If you can, get out there today and make your last wonderful memories on Rolling Thunder before it is gone forever—bring the tissues and have a good cleansing cry. I will continue to enjoy visiting this wonderful website to remember Rolling Thunder, the old Great Adventure, as it slowly seems to be disappearing. Keep all the good memories in your heart! God bless everyone and “enjoy your ride”. Love, Kara

Sfgalocal--Thank you so much for doing that! This is wonderful! I am not going to sit around and worry about whether or not this is going to work. We've got three days--I'm just going to fight with all I have! Thank you for the support, folks

Maybe you're right....BUT....as they say..."It ain't over 'til the fat lady sings"! I have to try or I will regret it forever. Thanks for your support folks

Please sign this petition if you want Six Flags to keep Rolling Thunder instead of tearing it down to make a pathway! Please sign quickly--we only have 4 days! https://www.change.org/petitions/six-flags-great-adventure-keep-rolling-thunder-rolling

Started a petition to save ROLLING THUNDER...if you are interested please take a minute to sign! Thank you! https://www.change.org/petitions/six-flags-great-adventure-keep-rolling-thunder-rolling

I have a long history with Six Flags Great Adventure and Rolling Thunder in particular. Some of my fondest childhood memories were made at Great Adventure and now that I am grown some of my best times with my own family have been made there as well. Over 30 years of pure fun and smiles! I even remember the days before I was tall enough for Rolling Thunder. I remember riding “Lil’ Thunder” in the Kiddie Kingdom, staring at Rolling Thunder looming next to it and counting the days until I would be tall enough to finally ride it like my parents. I remember my first ride on Rolling Thunder—it was a huge rite of passage for me. I will never forget the sound of this wooden ride—the slow clicking of the chain on the way up that huge hill and then the haunting roar during the rest of the ride…the wind in my hair…I was flying and it was pure magic. So began my love affair with Rolling Thunder and Great Adventure! Those who truly know me realize that this is not an exaggeration! I have ridden Rolling Thunder in the morning, dark night, heat, windy cold, and even rode it backwards when it was Rednuht Gnillor! I have ridden it with my family and friends. I have ridden it/studied it with my high school physics class. I have ridden it on the left side and “raced” friends on the right side and vice versa. And I rode it with my Dad two days before my wedding—a very special memory that I cherish. And now, most significantly I ride it with my husband and two oldest children who are 6 and 8 and can’t get enough of it! They even construct their own versions of Rolling Thunder with their Kinex and dream about riding it in the wintertime. Our family has had season passes for years and we always look forward to our time together on our favorite ride. A few weeks ago I took my two boys to Great Adventure and we were lucky enough to ride Rolling Thunder 4 times in a row (and on the left side too, my favorite side!) This was the first year that my boys could ride this ride together. I have been blessed to experience this through their eyes—sharing their anticipation as the train inches up the first hill, watching their little arms fly up in the air as we crest the top, hearing their cries of joy as we plummet down the first hill and seeing the beautiful glowing smiles on their faces after the ride. This particular day on Rolling Thunder with my children was just breathtaking and I remember thinking to myself, “I hope they NEVER tear this ride down!” I couldn’t have guessed that this would be the last time we would ever ride Rolling Thunder—I now feel like I am grieving the unexpected death of a life-long friend. To read that Rolling Thunder is going to be torn down a week from now is not only a big shock, to me it feels like complete sacrilege. A great classic work of art/engineering is being demolished to make room for a pathway to a new ride which will take up very little new space. Would you paint over a great classic painting just to make room on the wall? What a travesty. Isn’t there a way to keep Rolling Thunder and somehow build this pathway around it? My children and I just want to know why this has to happen. And on behalf of countless other families who are terribly disappointed and hurt by this my small voice begs Six Flags to reconsider this decision. Yes I realize that Rolling Thunder may be considered outdated (as I may be as well since I am now approaching 40) but this ride still has much to offer: a sense of nostalgia, and a great opportunity for children to “step up” to the other thrill rides they are not quite ready for, not to mention 100% pure fun! Rolling Thunder is for children, and the child in all of us and that alone is worth preserving. So now not has my love affair with Rolling Thunder come to an end, but it seems so has my love affair with Six Flags Great Adventure. Six Flags seems to be more concerned with making money and being the tallest/fastest in the world and less concerned with putting smiles on the faces of people and especially, children. This is evidenced not only by the scheduled demolition of Rolling Thunder but also by the elitist attitude that Six Flags reeks of these days with “Flash Pass” and “Elite Parking”. The focus is on the fear of extremes, not the fun and certainly no longer on families. Now I see Great Adventure through the eyes of an adult and am not so “thrilled” with it after all. I guess this is part of growing older? When things that are still totally awesome in your eyes are regarded by the majority as outdated and passé and then are torn down to make room for things you have absolutely no interest in. The 415 foot “Drop of Doom”, which I probably will never ride, has stolen our thunder and broken our hearts.

We did! My 6 and 8 yr old boys are devastated

Hate it hate it hate it. Like being in a caste system.